Process for the decortication and scouring of urticaceous plants.



OSWALD RICHTER AND FRIEDRICH PICK, OF VIENNA, AUSTRIA HUNGARY.

PROCESS FOR THE DECOR'IICATION AND SCOURING OF UBTIGAGEOUS PLANTS No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, Dr. OSWALD RIGH- rnn, professor at the University of Vienna, and Fnmnmorr PICK, manufacturer, both subjects of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, residing at Vienna, in the Empire of Austria-Hungary, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Process for the Decortication and Securing of Urticaceous Plants, of which the following is a. specification.

The object of the present invention is a process for separating and rendering proper for spinning the fibers contained in urticaceous plants, which process is characterized by this, that first the thin layers of pectin surrounding the fibers are destroyed, the

then liberated fibers are subjected in a dry or Wet condition to a hackling process, then boiled up to an hour in a bath of soap to induce a capacity for being spun, and finally broken. and hackled again in a wet or dry condition. ,The removal of the layers of pectin maybe eifected in this application in various ways, either by treating the rind or bark drawn off from the dry or green plants With'ammonia solution or by a retting or steeping process, or else 'even by a mechanical process.

The novelty of the process consists on the one hand in the combined successive application of the processes designated, and also in this that the processes used for removing the layers of pectin differ very essentially from the treatment hitherto known with alkalis and from'the known "retting proce'sses. In regard to the alkali treatment this differentiating feature lies in the fact, that the ammonia solution is employed at a normal temperature only slightly raised, so as to avoid any injury to the fibers by heat or pressure.

The retting process used for removing the layers of pectin according to: the invention dilfers from the known equivalent processes in this, that it is preceded by a leaching process for removing the 7 to 8% of fruit sugar contained, so that the retting process takes place only after the removal of the-sugar by leaching. The effect of the removal of the sugar will be discussed later on; at'this point we merely emphasize, that both the fact, that the Urticaceoe exhibit so large aquantity of fruit sugar, as also the fact, thatthe sugar Specification of Letters Patent.

- Patented Oct. 10, 1916.

Application filed February 2, 1915. Serial No. 5,804.

must the removed in the interest of the smooth working of the retting process'before the same is started, were not known up to the; present time.

In avhat follows there will first be described the modification of the process used. according to the invention for destroying the layers of pectin.

The destruction of the pectin,substance may be effected in three ways, that is, chemical, biological or mechanical: The raw material forming the basis for all these processes is the rind or bark pulled oif from the nettle plant (Urtz'ca), which can be drawn off not only from the green plant, but, as the applicants experiments have shown, also from the dry plants, if the latter have previously been softened up in ordinary waterfrom to 2 hours.

According to the chemical process the ation depends on the concentration of the ammonia. solution and rises from 8 to 72 rind drawn off from the green or dried and hours, accordingly as the solution is used,

concentrated at 25-27% or diluted, 56%.

For economical reasons theremoval of thesugar from the rind is efiected by steeping for two to ten hours in hydrant water at 1015 tion goes on smoothly without this.

The removal of thepectin substance in a biological way is effected by the action of bacteria in the form of a retting process. As the bacteria arising in the retting process along with the pectin ferments, and also the bacteria destroying the fiber substance, are extraordinarily assistedin their development by the sugar and thereby hinder the development of those bacteria, which attack the pectin substance, there ore in carrying out this process it is absolutely necessary, before beginning the retting process to free the rind from its sugar content, which can C. although the process of maceration, in which it is particularly necessary previously to leach out the sugar from the rind. This mechanical process consists in this, that the rind obtained after leaching out the sugar is either hackled directly'in a still moist condition or after drying is first subjected to a breaking process and then to the hackling;

All three processes give a fiber, free from pectin, but crude and possessing little flexibility. In orderto transform the fiber so obtained free from pectin into a form capa-' ble of spinning, the product is boiled in a soap bath from oneto 4/4 hours and immediately after the soap bath in the still moist condition or after previous drying is repeated hackled and broken for obtainlng a r fiber entirely capable of being spun.

Claim:

The process of producing spinnable fibers from the rind of nettle plants, Which consists in removing the rind in either dry or green state, macerating the same in an amm'onia' solution heated to a temperature of from 30 to 40 C., then subjecting the liberated fibers in either of'a dry or Wet state to a hackling operation,subsequently boiling the fibers in a soap bath for approximately an hour, and finally breaking the fibers and subjecting them to a repeated hackling operation in either of a dry or Wet state.

In testimony whereofwe aflix our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

DR. OSIVALD RICHTER. FRIEDRICH PICK. Witnesses:

FRIEDRICH BINDER, A GUST FUGGER. 

